1. Field
Embodiments of the present invention relate generally to rolling mill laying heads employed to form hot rolled products into helical ring formations, and are concerned in particular with an improved tripper for engaging and toppling the rings onto a conveyor for transport in an overlapping pattern to a remote location.
2. Description of Related Art
In a conventional laying head, as shown at 10 in FIG. 8, the rotating laying pipe 12 is surrounded by a cylindrical shroud 14. The laying pipe 12 forms the hot rolled product into a helical formation of rings “R”. As the rings R exit the shroud 14, they engage a tripper plate 16, causing the rings to topple forwardly onto a roller conveyor 18 or other like means designed to transport the rings in an overlapping pattern to a remote location.
The tripper 16 is flat, with a welded straight lip 16a positioned to engage the exiting rings. Experience has shown that as rolling speeds increase, the rings R end up making only point contact with the tripper lip 16a, leading to erratic tripping and non uniform distribution of the rings R on the conveyor 18.
Also, the tripper lip 16a is prone to rapid wear, requiring frequent and costly replacement of the entire tripper.